Small miracles everyday

I had my first follow-up post-chemo appointment today and the "small miracles" keep coming! It appears that the Femara pill that I am now taking is working wonderfully. My doctor informed me that it works for about 50% of woman and so far I am one of them. He said that you can usually tell pretty quickly if it is not going to work. So, I have been very blessed that the first chemo they tried as well as the Femara have both been effective right away. This has been a HUGE blessing in that no time has been wasted with ineffective treatments. He also mentioned that my blood work has improved with each visit meaning that my bone marrow is working regardless of the bone cancer. This means that my body is winning the war so far. He mentioned that the Femara generally works for 5 years and possibly longer. With the wonderful funding that breast cancer enjoys, I can only hope that there will be many more new and better treatments whenever that time is up. He mentioned there are many options out there even now.............I guess God has more work for me to do and I am happy to get the time to do it. Your prayers really do create miracles in my life. THANKS!

California Dreamin

I'm baaaack! I must say that I am happy to be home and sleeping in my own bed. Especially since we just bought a new one to replace the low budget one we bought from Sams Club a few years ago. Chris is now able to sleep through the night. I have not noticed such a drastic change yet but I am hopeful.
I spent my initial 2 days in San Diego with my cousin John and his wife Jeanette and their "adorable" son Scott who is 16 and still likes his parents. We had fun eating seafood and Mexican food and walking along the beach. We visited the new Mormon Battalion Visitors Center in Old Town and it is really worth a stop. The church has done a wonderful job showing the contribution made by the Saints to the San Diego area. I then went to my sister Tonya's home and visited her family. I was able to celebrate their daughter Faith's birthday with them and eat more Mexican food and In and Out Burger(the best!). Her husband had his GPS stolen out of his van while we were at the birthday dinner. We spent lots of time with my other sister Laura and her wonderful daughters. I was even able to see her son Blade before he returned to Utah. One morning I woke up at Laura's and decided to take a walk and on my return noticed that someone had let the air out of two of her tires. We ended up spending about 3 hours removing the tires and getting them back on after Costco filled them back up for free. Her husband passed away last year so it was just us ladies. She did a great job with very little help from me......she is a fighter. It is apparent that crime is alive and well in California. My Grandpa Davis and Grandma Briskey were also wonderful to see. It is amazing that at in their 90's they are doing so well and have so much energy and spunk. Thay have both lost their spouses but not their sense of humor or yest for life.
I have my doctors appointment today but feel great and I am expecting only good news. I was able to play tennis twice before I left on my trip and it was wonderful to do something so "normal".
As a warning to all in Lynchburg, Kelly got her license while I was gone so another milestone for last of my "babies". They grow up to soon and leave to fast although sometimes not fast enough !!! Well, I will post some pictures and I love you all. Everyone was amazed at how well I am doing and I give credit where it is due. All the prayers on my behalf and a Heavenly Father who is listening to all of you. Thanks again for all your love and support.

Pants on the ground...looking like a fool

I received a wonderful letter from a dear friend from church who recited that song just to give me some thing to smile about. It was perfect timing since I am trying to deal with the last teenager I will ever have. I love my kids dearly but I must admit that between the years of about 15 to 17 it can be really hard to like them. I thought that somehow my illness would make this whole teenager thing easier.....alas the fantasy has not become reality. I guess I should be happy that her life is so unaffected by this and that she feels the freedom to be completely "normal". Oh well, my other children are doing well and we had our battles with them while they were growing up so I can take comfort in knowing that "this to shall pass".
Chris is out of town again this week and was at last contact in Germany. I think he is going to France next. It sounds very exotic but he just sits in meetings most of the time. I hope when we are empty nesters I can travel with him and we can do a little sight seeing along with business.
School has finally started back this week but was delayed this morning and tomarow and may even be canceled again as we are expecting another 3-5". I know it is not much for most people but it closes this place down.
As far as my health, I have been having some trouble with bone pain in my back that comes and goes. It is due to the Nuelasta I was taking with the chemo and will should go away with time. I can usually deal with it with Ibuprofen but last night I had to "pop some percocet" I hate doing that but I am not a happy camper with out my sleep. I will never understand those people that enjoy taking narcotics, they always make me feel fuzzy and out of control. Maybe that is because I am a type "A" person and just cant deal with that out of body feeling. Anyway, It will go away with time as it has in the past so I am not to worried about it.
I have been praying for several people at church that have lost jobs and for some family h with recent health issues. I have found that my prayers are much more personal when I pray for others. All those years that I was not so tuned in to other peoples challenges have made me feel as though I need to make up for lost time. I have found that I really love people and enjoy just visiting with them and getting to know them better. What a blessing this has been to me. And what a blessing your prayers have been for me. I am truly grateful and privilaged to know such wonderful people. Enough rambling......I need to get to bed, just felt like saying hello.

A Time and a Season for all Things

With my last chemo complete and my recovery to normalacy nearly done the weather has decided to go crazy here. Two weeks ago we had 18" on snow and thankfully we were in Orlando. This past week we had another 14" and the kids have been out of school for this entire week.......can you say "mental breakdown". On top of that, Chris has been out of town the whole time and just returned thursday evening and is leaving again on saturday for another week....and guess what? We have another snow and ice strom coming this weekend.....Hurray! Boy do I miss Florida! Anyway, since I have been going crazy I decided to cook....see, I told you. Well I made a HUGE pasta salad and decided to take some around to some friends and took Kelly with me. At the first house we got stuck in the snow and had to have the postman, her grandson, and some other random gentleman help to push us out (I later found out that BMW's do not have front wheel drive. Are'nt they made in Germany and does'nt it snow there?) Anyway, as Kelly stated, "that's what you get for doing something nice mom". Somehow I don't think I taught her anything. Oh well, on to the next house where I noticed that I might get stuck so I turned around and decided to give up.....and got stuck! What a day. Kelly is home again as usual so I decided to have her wisdom teeth pulled....take that! Actually, all kidding a side, it is a good time since no one knows when they will ever go back to school, she is done with her swimming, does not have a job yet and has to finish her Behind the Wheel course before she gets her license. Having her in a Percocet haze can't hurt either......HA! Now for the good news....I am growing a little hair. I look like a newly hatched chick with that downey type fuzz on my head. Chris was pretty cute and kept on stareing at my head and saying, "wow, you can even see the folicules". He is so romantic! Speaking of romance, on the 12th we are in charge of a tri-ward Valentines Dance and I am very excited about it. I will post pictures for sure. Last year everyone had a great time. Well enough of me. The lesson this week that I have learned is "accept the things I can not change and try to be happy while accepting it!